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18.00 That's it for live coverage of day three from me. I'll be back tomorrow for the final day, tune in for more reaction to Ed Miliband's speech as well as live coverage and reaction on speeches from:

I can't confirm this at this stage, but I do hope it's true. That she said it, not that he does it, that is.

17.46 Jettisoning jargon and cutting through cliché, the Telegraph's sketchwriter Michael Deacon is on service in Brighton this week. He's just filed his impressions from Ed Miliband's speech.

If you didn’t manage to catch Ed Miliband’s speech at Labour conference, it went a bit like this. Friends: if you didn’t manage to catch Ed Miliband’s speech at Labour conference… it went a bit like this.

It was repetitive, friends. Friends: it was repetitive. He’d settled on two key phrases: “Britain can do better than this” and “A race to the top”. And do you know what he did? I’ll tell you what he did. He repeated the two key phrases. He repeated the two key phrases throughout the speech. Again and again – and again and again. Friends: that’s what Ed Miliband did.

17.39 Some questions were raised following Miliband's speech about the legality of imposing a price freeze on energy providers. The FT's EU Correspondent Alex Barker thinks Brussels would be unlikely to take issue with it.

We believe in a proper market. The market is failing in energy. What we’ve seen, when wholesale prices went up, retail prices went up – fair enough; when the wholesale price comes down, the retail price does not come down in the same way and we’re seeing massive profits by the Big Six. We’ve got to reform the energy market, that will take time, and in the meantime we’ll have this freeze. I think it will be warmly welcomed by the general public.

17.04 'Red Ed is back with a land grab', reckons Iain Martin.

Tonally and in policy terms this was quite simply the most Left-wing speech made by a mainstream party leader in several decades. The key line didn't seem to register in the hall, but I suspect it is going to become a massive story. Those who own land and refuse to build on it, and ignore government orders, will see it stolen for housebuilding. Use it or lose it, he declared. That can only mean the government, or councils, swooping on land they want.

16.59 For those that are interested, I am told that Justine Miliband's dress is this Bassey Jacquard Floral Print Dress by L.K. Bennett of London, yours for a snip at £245.

16.56 Energy Secretary Ed Davey, a Lib Dem, has said in a statement that Miliband's energy price freeze risks blackouts and investment.

Everyone wants to help with the cost of rising bills, which is why Liberal Democrats have cut income tax by £700 for working people. But Labour’s plan is a promise that won’t work.

When they tried to fix prices in California it resulted in an electricity crisis and widespread blackouts. We can’t risk the lights going out here too.

Fixing prices in this way risks blackouts, jeopardises jobs and puts investment in clean, green technology in doubt.

16.40 TUC reaction - from General Secretary Frances O’Grady:

This was a defining speech that rightly focussed on the living standards crisis and went on to offer hope. At its heart was a clear break from the view that Britain succeeds by reducing the rights, pay and prospects of people at work. More importantly the clear pledges made today and during the rest of this week showed that there will be a real choice at the next election – no-one can now say that the parties are all the same.

16.35 Miliband speech - key pledges and slogans

Freeze energy bills for until 2017 if Labour is elected in 2015

Cut business rates to help small businesses

Build 200,000 new homes a year and encourage development

Reduce voting age to 16

'Strengthen' the minimum wage

Main slogans: 'We're Britain, we can do better' and 'Race to the Top'

16.18 Miliband speech - snap reaction -here's some snap reaction from my colleague James Kirkup, who reckons Miliband's speech was "pretty good, but all for nothing unless he sticks to it".

The delivery was good: much more relaxed and confident than we often see in those weird, jerky TV interviews. The self-deprecation was good, and felt genuine and warm.

The delivery was good: much more relaxed and confident than we often see in those weird, jerky TV interviews. The self-deprecation was good, and felt genuine and warm.

16.10 Reaction from the British Chambers of Commerce, which claims Miliband "did not set out a clear vision to move Britain’s economy from good to great".

Ed Miliband is right to say that Britain should be in a ‘race to the top’. While it was refreshing to hear a leader speak about major economic issues, he did not set out a clear vision to move Britain’s economy from good to great. What’s more, his speech contained more sticks than carrots for business.

The way to have a high wage, high value economy is to encourage business investment and to build an enterprise-friendly environment. While some of his proposals pass this test, many others do not. What’s more, he has made significant spending commitments, but it is not clear how the country will create the wealth required to pay for them

16.00 Len McCluskey, General Secretary of Unite, was just up on Daily Politics.

I was pleased with some of the issues, the one million homes, freezing energy prices, for me the most important things he highlighted were problems with the minimum wage and low pay. I was encouraged ... I look forward to working with Ed Miliband.

McCluskey then agreed that there was "nothing not to like" in the speech and deftly swatted away some probing questions about a rift with Miliband over party reform. He said he would not be attending the gala dinner tonight because he had "better things to do". That's a dinner with his own delegates, by the way.

15.50 Some early strike back from the energy companies on Miliband's price freeze, via ITV's Laura Kuenssberg.

<noframe>Twitter: Laura Kuenssberg - SSE first of big 6 to respond to Lab proposal, they say price freezes would lead to 'unsustainable loss making retail businesses'</noframe>

<noframe>Twitter: Laura Kuenssberg - Industry group Energy UK says idea would risk jobs and make possibility of blackouts more likely</noframe>

According to Bloomberg's Rob Hutton, shares among the big six energy companies have not taken a hit off the back of Miliband's policy announcement.

<noframe>Twitter: Robert Hutton - Centrica shares have returned to the day high they reached before the Miliband speech. <a href="http://search.twitter.com/search?q=lab13" target="_blank">#lab13</a></noframe>

15.43 Caroline Flint, Energy and Climate Change Secretary, has been put up before Andrew Neil, who asked her whether the Labour's marquee policy on energy prices would discourage energy companies from doing business here.

Flint countered by calling the government's energy policy "disastrous for investment" and said that Labour was "working in the best interests of those companies by restoring confidence in energy providers".

She also countered questions about whether she's studied California, where Neil said a similar policy had resulted in shortages and blackouts, claiming that Labour had studied security risks.

15.25That is Miliband done. He spoke fluently for more than hour, as he did last year. The big announcement was the energy price freeze, a quick recap on that: if Labour get in in 2015 they will feeze gas and electricity prices until the start of 2017, making it illegal for energy companies to raise household bills.

15.24Miliband vs Cameron - Miliband criticises the PM for siding with the Murdochs, with the tobacco industry, with millionaires, and for introducing the bedroom tax.

If you want to know the difference between me and David Cameron, here's the way to remember it: when it was Murdoch vs the McCanns, he took the side of Murdoch.

When it was the doctors versus the tobacco industry, he took the side of the tobacco industry, when it was the millionaires wanting tax cuts versus the families hit by the bedroom tax, he sided with the millionaires.

David Cameron was the prime minister who introduced the bedroom tax. I'll be the prime minister who repeals the bedroom tax!

He also hit out at the Home Office for its 'Go Home' immigration vans. According to Peter Dominiczak in the hall, the crowd went wild for bedroom tax repeal.

By far the biggest cheer so far came when Miliband said he would repeal the so-called bedroom tax. People in the hall were literally bouncing on their seats for that section.

15.20 Scottish independence - My machine here can't quite keep pace with Ed Miliband at the moment. He moved on from party reform to Scottish devolution: devolution works, he says. He tells the story of Cathy Murphy, a woman from Glasgow who attended the 2011 party conference before having to travel to Scotland for a life-saving operation. It did not matter that she was not from Scotland, Miliband says. "I don't want Cathy to become a foreigner: Let's win the battle for the United Kingdom."

15.16 'Here's the bit you've all been waiting for...' Miliband turns to the thorny issue of party reform.

Change is difficult, change is uncomfotable. And I understand why people are uncomfortable. But we cannot just be a party of 200,000, we should be a party of 500,000, or 600,000. I'm realistic enough to believe that's possible. I believe that because of the unique link we have with the trade unions. I don't want to end that link, I want to mend that link.

15.10 'Labour need to rescue the NHS from the Tories'

When we left office we left the NHS with the highest public satisfaction it has ever seen. Yes friend, we did rescue the National Health Service. When you heard David Cameron casting around for someone to blame for the NHS, it's as simple as ABC - anyone but Cameron ... It's the same old story; we rescue the NHS, they wreck the NHS, and we'll have to rescue it all over again.

From my colleague Peter Dominiczak, who is at the speech:

Andy Burnham, the shadow health secretary, looked emotional as Miliabnd said the last Labour government "rescued" the NHS. Burnham has faced claims from the Tories that he was partly to blame for failings in the health service that let to scandals like the one at Mid Staffs.

If you've got a bad back you can talk about it, but if you've got depression and anxiety you don't want to talk about it. We've got to change that. It's an afterthought in our National Health Service.

14.58Big policy announcement on energy prices from Miliband, as expected.

We need successful energy companies but there will never be public consent for investment unless you get a fair deal.The system is broken and we are going to fix it. The next Labour government will freeze gas and electric prices until the start of 2017 ... The energy companies aren't going to like it, but that is what we will do. They have been overcharging people for years.

More on this from my colleague James Kirkup, who has the detail.

Energy companies would be legally barred from raising household bills under a Labour government, Ed Miliband has said.

The Labour leader said that one of his first acts in office would be to pass emergency legislation forbidding energy companies from increasing domestic prices for almost two years.

He made the pledge as part of a speech arguing that only his party can restore household living standards, a key test for the next general election in 2015.

Rising domestic energy prices have played a large role in that process, and Mr Miliband outlined a series of reforms to make the energy market more competitive, saying that his plans would eventually bring down prices.

He admitted that such changes would take time, meaning he would take more direct action over prices.

“In the meantime, I am not willing to just stand by. So the next Labour government will freeze gas and electricity prices until the start of 2017. Your bills will be frozen, benefiting millions of families and millions of businesses,” he said.

“That’s what I mean by a government that fights for you. That’s what I mean when I say Britain can do better than this.”

14.48 Miliband is now outlining the two policy plans that were briefed overnight:

Cutting business taxes and rates for small businesses. He says Labour will cut taxes for 80,000 small businesses and cut rates for 1.5 million. Then in 2016 Labour will freeze rates. Small businesses will benefit by at least £450 a year, Miliband says.

Apprenticeships: Miliband sticks to his guns over policy that employers should provide an apprenticeship for every worker it brings in from outside the EU. The policy was criticised because it would be illegal to reserve that apprenticeship for British people.

14.46 Miliband refers to Lord Howell, George Osborne's father-in-law, who said in a well-publicised gaffe earlier this summer that it was OK to frack the North East because it is "desolate". Miliband says Howell's comments represent what's wrong with the Tory Party and gets a huge response from the audience, some of whom booed Lord Howell's name.

14.44 Miliband lambasts Cameron's 'global race' riff from his own 2012 conference speech, claiming it is more like a "race to the bottom"

Britain can’t win a race for the lowest wages against countries where the wages are a penny an hour… Britain can’t win a race for the lowest-skilled jobs against countries where kids leave school at 11 ... and the more we try, the worse things will get for you… It’s a race to the bottom. Britain cannot and should not win that race.”

He calls on Britain to "win the race to the top"instead.

We can make a difference, we can win the race to the top … it’s about the jobs we create, the business we support, the talent we nurture, the wages we earn and the vested interests we take on.

14.36 A dig at the Tories over living standards and for being the friends of the rich.

They used to say a rising tide lifts all boats. Now a rising tide just seems to life the yachts.

And another, following Ed Balls yesterday, at David Cameron for taking off his shirt in public. He adds that Cameron is "not worthy of a lap of honour" for his record on the economy but "a lap of shame".

Cameron does have one record though. He has been in power for 39 months, and for 38 of those wages have risen more slowly than prices. That means your living standards are getting worse year after year after year ... The crisis of living standards isn't an accident of his economic policy, it is his economic policy.

14.35 The main bit of sloganeering so far comes in the form of a patiotic rallying cry.

We're Britain, we're better than this. We're Britain, we're better than this Britain can do better than this. Britain will do better than this.

Those aren't printing errors, he is repeating for effect.

14.33 Miliband is paying tribute to British troops around the world, to the police, "who serve with so little credit", and to people he's met around the country.

When I think of who I need to fight for, I think about all the people I've met over the last year. The people of Britain and their enormous spirit.

14.28 Miliband refers back to the leadership race that saw him beat his brother.

Leadership is about those lonely moments when you do what you have to. It was really hard for my family but Labour had to turn the page and I believed I was the man to do it.

And it looks like he might have seen the recent ComRes polling, which says his stands on Syria and phone hacking worked well for him. He trumpets both.

14.25 Miliband begins with a little comedy sketch about picking up a young girl who fell of her bike in front of him. She called him an action hero, said he was suave, not geeky at all. "Why are you laughing conference?"

But, it transpired... she was concussed. "Anyway," he said to her, "you made my year."

It's a confident start. Now on to serious matters. Ed cites again the "great reforming government of 1945".

14.15Ed Miliband is up, without notes as expected. He'll be hoping to repeat the success of his 'One Nation' speech at last year's conference, also delivered from memory. You can watch it live with the player above.

14.15 Here's Ed Miliband with his wife Justine, walking along the Brighton seafront, en route to make his conference speech. He's expected on the stage any minute.

Ed Miliband and wife Justine walk to the Brighton Centre where he will deliver his keynote speech to his Party's annual conference. PRESS ASSOCIATION

14.05 Miliband speech - Ed Miliband is due on stage at 2.15pm. He will be speaking without notes, I'm told, so a text copy of the speech won't be available immediately as is usually the case.

A quick reminder of some of the things we know already:

Miliband will pledge to make Labour “the party of small business” by cutting taxes on small firms at the expense of big corporations. More on that here from my colleague James Kirkup.

That a Labour government would encourage the building a wave of new towns, promising 200,000 new homes a year by 2020, and allow communities to expand through development.

13.40 Latest polls - Six in 10 say Miliband 'does not come across an an election winner'. Ed Miliband's summer of discontent continues. The latest Index poll conducted by ComRes for ITV News reveals that six in 10 (61%) Britons say that Ed Miliband does not come across as an election winner. Just 17% disagree, while 22% are not sure.

Half (49%) of the British public believe that Labour would have a better chance of winning the next General Election without Ed Miliband as party leader. Only 19% disagree with this statement.

Miliband's stances on Syria and phone-hacking worked in his favour, according to the survey, but the way he comes across on radio and television work against him.

13.14 More reaction to Miliband's pledge for small businesses. This, from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), is a little more than some of what's gone before, including CBI head John Cridland (see 09.38).

British Retail Consortium Director General Helen Dickinson said:

The UK business rates are the highest property taxes of any EU country and lead directly to vacant shops. A consensus is emerging that the system is no longer fit for purpose and requires total reform.

We therefore welcome this focus on supporting small businesses and high streets and the recognition that the cost of business rates has become unsustainable for retailers. With more than one in ten shops currently empty across the country, a complete reform of the system is required. We are keen to discuss these proposals in detail with Labour to understand how they might form part of this more fundamental root and branch review.

12.59 Ed Miliband is enjoying the weather as he prepares for his speech. He's on in just over an hour.

<noframe>Twitter: Ed Miliband - Beautiful day in Brighton. Getting ready for my speech this afternoon. In the meantime, there&rsquo;s a few important policies to share with you.</noframe>

Labour has published a couple of behind the scenes pictures of Miliband and his wife Justine in their hotel room.

Stefan Rousseau/PA

Stefan Rousseau/PA

12.52 McBride was followed by Tory MP Alan Cairns, who has called for the former spin doctor to be investigated by the police under the Computer Misuse Act over his admission that he accessed Gordon Brown's email account. No word from the police on this yet.

12.50Damian McBride has just been grilled by Andrew Neil on the Daily Politics. That was followed by an appearance by Tory MP Alan Cairns, who has called for the police to investigate McBride's antics. First, a few key points from McBride:

Revealed he was interviewed for the spin job with Gordon Brown by Gus O’Donnell. O'Donnell told Gordon Brown: "this guy is no longer operating as a civil servant, he’s behaving in a political way".

Claimed Brown, Balls and Miliband were not aware of his methods. (Miliband has said he was aware of the negative briefing, Balls has denied and knowlegde, Brown has dodged question)

Poured scorn on Douglas Alexander's briefing denials: "I think for Douglas to say that he has never engaged in any kind of divisive or destructive briefing, I don’t think is accurate."

Reiterated his claim that Alexander leaked the story about Brown failing to secure a meeting with Barack Obama in 2009, despite trying five times.

Denied involvement in the 2006 coup that ousted Tony Blair, telling Neil it was "well-orchestrated" and that much of it "came as a surprise" to him.

Hit back at Alastair Campbell, who told the Sunday Politics that McBride's antics discouraged people from voting for Labour in 2010. McBride said people who didn't vote for Labour in 2005 may well have done so because of Alastair Campbell.

Defended his leaking of the secret EU budget and reiterated claim that Gordon Brown instructed him to do so.

Appeared fairly uncontrite when asked by Andrew Neil whether it is fair that he is receiving a "huge cheque" for his book, while the ministers whose careers he destroyed are not. "They can write their own books," he said.

12.20 Away from a Labour conference for a minute, a little update, via Politics Home, on Bloomgate (as I think I'll call gaffe-prone Godfrey Bloom's decision to resign from Ukip today). Ukip leader Nigel Farage, who said that Bloom had ruined the party's annual conference last week by calling party activists "sluts" and hitting a journalist, has said on BBC News that he doesn't want Bloom "hounded out of the party".

I don’t want Godfrey Bloom hounded out of the Party… Calling women sluts is inappropriate, some of the people in the room laughed.

12.09 My colleague Peter Dominiczak has more from Brighton on divisions over HS2, which appear have intensified after Maria Eagle went a little rogue in her speech.

Divisions in Labour over the HS2 rail project have intensified after Maria Eagle, the shadow transport secretary, contradicted Ed Balls by insisting that the party “supports” the £50 billion project.

Mrs Eagle departed from the agreed text of her speech at the party’s conference to say that Labour still backs the controversial rail link.

Mrs Eagle’s comments appear designed to undermine Mr Balls and reaffirm the party’s backing for the beleaguered scheme.

“I say to Cameron, get a grip on this project... on its budget, and get it back in on track,” Mrs Eagle told the party’s Brighton conference.

However, she departed from the script by adding the phrase, “That’s why we support HS2”.

11.45 Tom Harris MP: Why I refuse to go to Labour Party conference - Tom Harris, MP for Glasgow South and former Labour frontbencher, is not in Brighton. He isn't up for the costs involved, he explains in the Telegraph today.

I am not in Brighton. There are two reasons for this. The first is that, having resigned from the Labour front bench to spend more time with my family, I figured I should spend this week with my family rather than with colleagues, many of whom I see plenty of when Parliament’s sitting anyway.

The second reason is the sheer eye-watering personal cost of attending. You can throw a brick into any bus queue in the country and hit someone who assumes MPs have some way of getting reimbursed for expenses incurred at their party conferences (author’s note: do not, under any circumstance, throw a brick at a bus queue). We don’t, and quite right too. But that means that accommodation and travel (not to mention refreshments in the admittedly unlikely event you can’t get a friendly journalist to stump up for sustenance on your behalf) have to come from the household budget.

11.26 Maria Eagle rails against the train companies -Maria Eagle, Shadow Secretary of Transport, or Angela as she is know to Keith Vaz, hit out at the train companies over fare increases and poor service in her speech just now.

We can’t be One Nation if we price more and more people off our transport system. If people can’t afford to live near their job, then find the cost of commuting goes up faster than their wages. If young people are told to stay in education, or find an apprenticeship, but then find they can’t afford to get there.

That’s why a One Nation Labour government will tackle the cost of living crisis. Banning train companies from hiking fares beyond strict limits. No more averaging out the so-called fare cap, but an actual cap. Not on some routes, but on every route.

Let me say this to the train companies: You make hundreds of millions a year, in a system that pays out more in subsidies than you pay back. So when fares go up again in January, do the right thing:

Voluntarily cap fare rises, since Ministers won’t. Do your bit to ease the cost of living crisis.

It wasn't just gentle encouragement though.

But if you choose not to act, then a One Nation Labour government will put a proper cap on fares.

She also criticised the Tories over their new rail fare cap - £250 one way, £500 return.

And, that’s not even First Class. Conference, what planet is David Cameron on?

11.14 Maria Eagle has just finished speaking. Embarrassment for Keith Vaz as he gets up and thanks 'Angela'. "It's Maria" she calls out, and Vaz gets booed by the audience.

"I have a sister in parliament, so I know how it feels", he says.

Many of Vaz's sotto voce comments to others on the platform have been audible over the morning. None controversial, so far.

11.04 Carry on Conference - Another video has emerged of Damian McBride's publisher Iain Dale scuffling with a nuclear protestor, this one showing McBride gamely continuing with his ITV interview while the amateur pugilists go at it in the background.

10.58Hilary Benn on affordable housing and private landlords - Hilary Benn, MP for Leeds Central, has just finished speaking. Benn focused on living standards, pledging that Labour would help councils to build more affordable homes by reforming the Housing Revenue Account and help renters by introducing a private register of landlords.

In Liverpool and Leeds, Stevenage and Southwark, Manchester, York, Exeter, Nottingham, Ipswich and in many other Labour areas our councillors are building social homes on a scale we haven’t seen for a generation. Tackling the cost of living crisis by building homes that families can afford.

And, Conference, that’s why a Labour government will help councils to build more affordable homes by reforming the Housing Revenue Account.

And for the 8.5 million people who now rent privately, we will tackle the unfair fees charged by lettings agents. We’ll introduce a national register of private landlords. And we’ll fight for longer tenancies and predictable rents so that families can put down roots.

And for the millions of people who dream of owning their own home, Labour will get Britain building again. We’re just not building enough homes and yet, in the last few years, the profits of the big housebuilders have soared.

Land is too expensive. Too often developers hang on to it hoping for the price to rise. And communities feel powerless.

Today Ed Miliband will pledge to change that.

He'll do that in his leader's speech at 14.15. Stay tuned. Chair Keith Vaz acknowledged that Benn's father, Tony Benn, is in hospital and wished him a speedy recovery.

I felt for some time now that the new UKIP is not really right for my any more, perhaps, than New Labour was right for Dennis Skinner. However, our message is clear – self-government. Our wonderful and loyal membership will win through with their dedication and hard work.

It’s been a pleasure to work with them for 15 years and I take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to the thousands of people who’ve supported me with messages of goodwill in recent months and particularly in recent days. There have simply been too many to make a personal response – forgive me.

I shall sit out my term as an independent and give my wholehearted support to Jane Collins, who is almost certainly going to be the next UKIP MEP and probably a second seat yet to be decided. I shall of course, retain my membership. Onwards and upwards.

10.39 'I normally run a mile from physical confrontation' - Iain Dale, publisher of the tell-all Damian McBride memoir hanging over this conference, has blogged on his scuffle with a protestor this morning (see my 09.45 update).

In some ways I have committed the cardinal sin of becoming the story myself, rather than my author, and I regret that. But do I regret that I stepped in to protect my author? No I do not. One of the snappers afterwards said to me that I did what they had all been dying to do for years, as he regularly interferes with their professional work. Everyone has an inalienable right to protest, but no one has a right to make a continual nuisance of themselves and interrupt interviews like that.

10.26 Miliband 'can't rob Peter to pay Paul' - The British Chambers of Commerce has followed the CBI in criticising Miliband's small businesses pledge, to be outlined in the leader's speech this afternoon. John Longworth, Director General of the BBC, has said:

Labour must realise that you can't rob Peter to pay Paul. Business rates are an iniquitous tax and a drag on business - hitting companies of all sizes long before they make profits. Ed Miliband is right to look for ways to ease the business rates burden, as the BCC has urged the Treasury to do for years now. Yet we question why a freeze or cut in business rates for smaller firms should be offset by a delayed reduction in corporation tax.

To create an environment where companies can thrive, both business rates and corporation tax rates have to be contained, and the broken business rates system fundamentally reformed. The notion that you can offset cuts in one tax with changes to another doesn't deal with the real problem - the fact that the business rates system is bust and in need of reform. Ultimately, companies of all sizes need to be clear on taxes and rates bills, so that they can generate jobs and wealth with certainty.

09.59 More on Ed Miliband's speech from Benedict Brogan, who says the Labour leader needs to "end the damaging narrative that has taken hold about his leadership".

It's Ed Miliband's speech today. After several months of preparation - and so many drafts his team stopped numbering them - Mr Miliband needs to produce something that captures the imagination, and end the damaging narrative that has taken hold about his Labour leadership. A repeat of last year's notes-free style is expected, but it is the substance to which the electorate will be paying attention.

Mr Miliband's central pitch will be an imitation of Ronald Reagan's "Are you better off than four years ago?" from the 1980 presidential election. To this end, Mr Miliband will argue that the link between economic growth and living standards has been broken, with the proceeds siphoned off by the richest in society. He will propose a shake-up of corporation tax rates, with increases for large businesses and decreases for small ones. Mr Miliband will also announce an ambitious house-building plan and say that Labour would build 200,000 new house a year by 2020.

Whether this will be enough to transform the mood around conference is unclear.

09.45 That picture I posted of Damian McBride (09.15) really was the calm before the storm after all. Moments later a nuclear protestor interrupted the TV interview he was preparing for and Iain Dale, McBride's publisher and sometime Telegraph blogger, took it upon himself to restrain the man. In typically British fashion, some shambolic rolling around on the floor ensued.

Note the typographical error in the protestor's sign. This video has it all.

John Cridland, the head of the Confederation of British Industry warns that increasing corporation tax for bigger firms will hurt the UK economy. Cridland told this morning's Today programme:

Some of the tax changes that we hear that Mr Miliband will propose are not particularly pro-business. Reducing business rates for small companies is a good thing to do, but I wouldn’t do it by increasing taxes on investment, on research, in job creation, which is what will happen if you put up corporation tax.

It’s being framed as, ‘We’re helping small companies and that’s a more important choice than helping large companies’. Actually, all companies pay corporation tax and small companies and large companies work together.

More on that to come from my colleague PeterDominiczak shortly.

09.26 It wasn't all fallout from McBride's revelations yesterday, there was policy talk too. One of the bigger stories was HS2, specifically Ed Balls' conference speech hint that a Labour government might scrap the expensive rail development. Rachel Reeves then hardened Labour talk over the £50m project, telling the World at One "We would cancel if it we did not think it was good value for money".

Sir John Armitt, Former Chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority, told Radio 4's Today Programme this morning he would be "very disappointed" to see Labour reverse ferret on its commitment to HS2.

I mean politics is politics. You should not get pushed off it for short term considerations. That would be my belief.

I would be very disappointed if that was happening in this case. I think we’ve had political consensus around HS2. It’s a very large project. It requires a political consensus frankly to be delivered at the end of the day and I think the value of HS2 to the country long-term is still absolutely certain and I think is understood by senior politicians in all the major parties.

I think what Ed Balls was doing today was simply setting out his credentials as a future Chancellor.

Quote from Politics Home.

09.15 More on McBride this morning from my colleague Peter Dominiczak:

Mr McBride, the former spin doctor, insisted that the current Labour leader and the shadow chancellor would have been left “horrified” when they read about the full extent of his actions.

Mr Miliband and Mr Balls were key allies of the former prime minister and questions have been raised about what they knew about the dark arts used by Mr McBride.

Here is Mr McBride, looking impressively calm on Brighton seafront given the storm he's whipped up down there.

Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

09.08 The Damian McBride saga rumbles on, with the Tory opportunists calling for the police to investigate McBride's activities as Gordon Brown's press aide and for the Civil Service standards body to strip him of his pension.

Labour Deputy Leader Harriet Harman was on ITV's Daybreak this morning, where she attempted to put as much distance between Ed Miliband and Mcbride as possible.

He broke all the rules for special advisers and he shouldn't be doing that and, you know, it was disgraceful, but that is not how Ed Miliband allows his team to behave.

Well, what you’re talking about there is an accusation [against Mr Alexander] by Damian McBride against somebody else and the point about that is that Damian McBride has admitted he’s a liar so why should I believe that as much as I believe any of the things he said about it.

It was bad, I’m not minimising it but it was the past and we’re thinking about all the things people are struggling with in terms of the cost of living, the cost of childcare in terms of young people being able to get their first home, how to get their first job and I absolutely promise you I’m not just saying that I’m not doing a Damian McBride here and telling a whopper.

McBride is doing the media rounds, starting last night on BBC's Newsnight and continuing today with the Daily Politics. His Newsnight appearance had great potential for interview violence, writes Telegraph Deputy Editor Benedict Brogan in his briefing this morning, but no such luck.

Mr McBride sailed through, largely by admitting everything, accepting every criticism, and offering himself for any further punishment his enemies might have in mind. All, that is, except the money: he refused an audience invitation to donate his fee from the Mail (reportedly around £130-150k) to the Labour party. His answer was matter-of-fact: he left government with nothing except debt, the cash will go towards paying them off. Apart from that he agreed he was despicable, and ashamed. His apology not just to those he targeted but particularly to the innocents caught in the cross-fire - the special advisers and civil servants - looked and sounded sincere. To the Tories calling for him to be investigated by the police and have his pension stripped he put his hands up: it's a matter for others (if anyone has any sense no more time will be wasted on that).Read the full briefing and sign up here.

09.05 What the papers say - the main attraction yesterday was the Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls, whose speech was greeted with a standing ovation and hailed as a triumph by the Labour faithful. But what did the papers make of it?